Beginning Monday, June 21st,
2004 CHN began unveiling 144 Team previews in 144 Days. CHN ranked the
nations top 144 teams, and is unveiling one per day leading up until the
opening day of the 2004-05 Season.

Stan
Heath is still trying to turn around this struggling program. The
recruiting hasn’t been a problem and another stellar class comes to
Fayetteville this year. A solid returning backcourt in Jonathon Modica,
Ronnie Brewer, Eric Ferguson and Olu Famutimi should lead the way for the
Razorbacks to improve on their disappointing 4-12 conference record of a
year ago.

Who’s Out: Big man Billy Pharis may be the biggest lose for
Arkansas. The 6-8, 230 pounder averaged 5.5 points and 2.9 rebounds his
senior campaign. Guards Jamar Blackmon and Charles Tatum saw few minutes
during their senior seasons. Kendrick Davis and Wen Mukubu have both
transferred. Davis, who is headed to North Texas, saw less action last year
as a sophomore. The 6-4 guard still managed 5.4 points per game in 25
appearances. Mukubu, a 6-6 swingman, only averaged 5.8 minutes in 24
games. Mukubu is planning to play for UAB in 2005-2006.

Who’s In: Al Jefferson would have made this group of newcomers second
to none, but even without the 15th overall pick of the NBA Draft, this group
will make a big impact on the SEC. Stan Heath built up his frontline with
his best three recruits. Charles Thomas might be a little undersized for a
power forward at 6-7 and 243 pounds, but he is an aggressive player in the
post and has a great rebounding ability. Thomas has put on quite a bit of
weight recently to help his strength under the basket. Darian Townes can
still be a little rough around the edges, but has tons of potential. The
6-9 power forward is a solid scorer with the ability to be a big shot
blocking threat. Steven Hill is one of the best incoming centers in the
nation. The 7-footer averaged 16.0 points, 12.0 rebounds and 6.0 blocks as
a senior at Branson High School in Missouri. Junior college transfer
Dontell Jefferson will add some depth at the point. As a sophomore at
Atlanta Metropolitan College, Jefferson averaged 16.4 points, 9.2 assists,
6.7 boards and 3.4 steals. Marcus Monk is a football player first, but
after Houston Nutt’s team finishes up on the gridiron, the 6-6 small forward
should see some minutes on the court.

Who to Watch: Jonathon Modica led the team in scoring last year, but
it is Ronnie Brewer who may step up and become the go to guy this year.
Brewer, as a freshman, scored 12.2 points and led the team in both rebounds
and assists, averaging 5.5 and 3.4, respectively. Those are some lofty
numbers for a guy who plays the two guard and the three spot. At 6-7, the
rebounds aren’t too surprising, but he shouldn’t be asked to do too much
work on the boards this season with the talented frontcourt newcomers.

Projected Conference Rank: Freshmen Charles Thomas, Darian Townes and
Steven Hill have to help out Michael Jones, Matt Jones and Vincent Hunter in
the frontcourt. It might not take long, if at all, for the newcomers to
take over the starting jobs from the returning players. With a solid
backcourt and a promising frontcourt, the Razorbacks shouldn’t have much
trouble improving on their 12-16 record. An 8th place finish and a trip to
the NIT won’t be the highest expectations this young group will see before
they leave Fayetteville.